Astros: Dusty Baker reaches managerial feat, son hits walk off

With a 4-0 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday, Houston Astros‘ manager Dusty Baker joins the 2,000 win club in his 25th managerial season. Tuesday marked Baker’s 137th win with Houston, while totaling 840 with the San Francisco Giants, 322 with the Chicago Cubs, 509 with the Cincinnati Reds and 192 with the Washington Nationals.

Baker – as the manager for the Giants — won his first game at the helm April 6, 1993, over former Atlanta Braves’ teammate Joe Torre and the St. Louis Cardinals. The leadoff hitter for the Cardinals was Gerónimo Peña, father of Jeremy Peña.

Baker did not seem eager to celebrate his inevitable feat when asked by reporters Monday, but he could not stop smiling in a postgame interview Tuesday on AT&T SportsNet.

"“Might as well get it over with here soon. That’s my thought so we can get back to business. I’m grateful,” Baker said Tuesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reported."

Baker is now the 12th manager and the first African-American manager to reach 2,000 wins, solidifying his Hall of Fame case. Joey Votto — former first baseman of Baker — congratulated the skipper on Twitter.

"“Dusty, big congrats on 2000 MLB wins!” Votto said. “That’s like 25,000 cellphones, music speakers, and tv’s you had players turn off 30 minutes before the game to get locked in for competition. Much love, my friend.”"

While Dusty Baker reached 2,000 wins, his son — Darren — hit a walk off for the Nationals’ High-A affiliate the same day.

As Dusty and Darren shared a father-son moment during a spring training contest, the two both celebrated Tuesday with Darren hitting a walk off fly out for the Washington Nationals’ High-A affiliate — the Wilmington Blue Rocks.

On the same day as Baker’s 2,000th win, Jose Altuve climbed the Astros’ home-run ladder with his 166th-career homer, tying him with Glenn Davis for sixth-most in franchise history.